


Mending Fences

by MarieAnne_Cormier



Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: A tiny bit of angst in one section near the end, Alexstrasza is patient and just Healing, Alleria is a useless bi, F/F, Fluff, Healing, Look love requires trust and trust requires honesty, Mostly Fluff, Trust, communication is important, loving relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-02-25
Packaged: 2019-11-05 10:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17917199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarieAnne_Cormier/pseuds/MarieAnne_Cormier
Summary: Alleria reflects on her upcoming wedding to the Dragon Queen, and can't help but feel like there's something missing. Alexstrasza helps her figure out what that something actually is.





	Mending Fences

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Reynarius](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reynarius/gifts).



> For Rey, who could always use more Dragon Wife/Void Wife in her life. Hope you like it!!!

Alleria sat atop the highest point of Wyrmrest Temple, both of her legs pressed close to her chest as she enjoyed the bite of the cold, northern winds. The chilliness helped with the storm of emotions in her soul, helped distract her some from the sadness that sometimes threatened to consume her.

By all rights she shouldn’t _be_ sad. She had asked the love of her life to marry her and said love of her life had said yes. The ceremony was set to happen in a month, and her heart was mostly light as her days were busy with preparations for the day and learning how to balance life in Dragonblight with her responsibilities to her people. It was tiring but fulfilling, and she was genuinely enjoying her life nowadays, a marked contrast to how things used to be before. 

Now that the war was over things were even easier in that regard. There was even more cause for celebration, as the kingdoms of Azeroth found themselves rebuilding and doing their best to plant seeds that would repopulate scorched plains, so that life and beauty would once again grow on fields that had seen far too much bloodshed and death. 

Theirs was a peace that was still tentative, still fragile just barely over a year into it, but it was a peace that was still holding. The factions had _tentatively_ begun to cooperate on joint ventures, diplomatic channels had been reopened, less and less disagreements ended in fights and brawls, and things were stabilizing. Things were _good._

So why was it that despite all of this she felt a nagging in the back of her head, a hollowness aching in her chest insistently when she least expected it?

So busy was she being lost in her troubled thoughts that her sensitive ears failed to hear the soft footsteps that approached steadily.

“I thought I would find you here, beloved. This _is_ your favorite brooding spot.”

Alleria started a bit, but the surprise melted into a loving smile as she turned toward that wonderful voice and was met with the gentle golden eyes of Alexstrasza, the Life-Binder. 

Still… 

“Brooding spot?” Alleria’s smile turned into a small smirk, a long eyebrow quirking in amusement at her lover’s description of her favorite thinking ‘corner’.

Alexstrasza nodded as she sat beside her soon-to-be consort, her lips parted in a warm smile as they traced the Ranger’s frame, her hand going to Alleria’s instinctively and twining their fingers lightly. The Dragon Queen revelled in touching her lover in any and all ways, and she always sought to at least hold Alleria’s hand whenever possible. She was loving like that. 

“Whenever you have something weighing on your mind, you seek high places in order to think. This is the highest spot in the Temple, and so I am almost always certain to find you here if you are not in your usual haunts.” The Queen’s eyes softened as they met her Elf’s own. “And you only curl in on yourself like this, with both your knees against your breast, when you are feeling most vulnerable.”

Alexstrasza squeezed Alleria’s hand gently, a light pressure that was reassuring in its solidity. “What is it that torments you so, my love? Have you received any distressing news? Is there a way in which I may be of help to you?”

Alleria couldn’t help but melt at the worry and sheer amount of _care_ that she could hear as clear as day in her lover’s voice. How she had managed to get so lucky as to gain the Dragon Queen’s favor, as to obtain her whole heart, she would never know. To be on the receiving end of so much love and sweetness and thoughtfulness, to be known like _this…_ there were no words for it, and she was endlessly grateful for it all. She made a mental note to give proper thanks to Belore later, but for now she contented herself with closing the small amount of distance that Alexstrasza had left between them to respect her space and kissed her beloved deeply, her lips eagerly seeking Alexstrasza’s own.

Alexstrasza welcomed the attention, one hand going into Alleria’s hair to pull the Ranger even closer while the other slowly made its way down the other woman’s arm, her fingers following lines in blue that she had long since memorized but would never tire of tracing. 

She indulged in it for a few moments longer before breaking their kiss and smiling down at her lover. “So, do you wish to talk about whatever it is that has a personalized stormcloud atop your head, or would you rather keep kissing me?”

Alleria grinned back and sidled fully onto her lover’s side, pressing as close as she could to the Dragon Queen’s body. “Is that an offer I hear, my love?”

Alexstrasza laughed fully, the warm notes of it soothing something in the Elf’s heart that she hadn’t known needed reassurance. “I will be more than happy to indulge you as much as you want, my Ranger,” she booped Alleria’s nose lightly, biting back a chuckle at the way her beloved crossed her eyes at the motion, “ _After_ you tell me what it is that had you brooding up here in the first place. If you wish to speak of it, of course.”

The Elven woman’s smile dimmed a bit but didn’t leave her face. Alexstrasza always knew exactly what to say to put her at ease, how to help her be able to speak her mind. It was one of her lover’s most wonderful characteristics, and for the millionth time since they’d met, Alleria couldn’t help but be immensely grateful that she had managed to win over this amazing creature’s heart. 

She let out a small sigh and wrapped an arm around Alexstrasza’s waist, leaning her head on the taller woman’s broad shoulder before she began to speak. “I haven’t received any distressing news, so you can stop worrying about that. It’s something more…personal.”

Alexstrasza hummed softly in acknowledgement, her right hand gently threading through Alleria’s hair in a soothing pattern that she knew her beloved liked well, while her left went to cover the Elf’s own and twined their fingers again. 

Alleria took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to organize her thoughts so she could voice what was bothering her. “I just don’t know. I find myself feeling…” She grunted in frustration. Why were the words so difficult to find? “It’s…something like sadness, but not exactly it either?” 

Alexstrasza frowned lightly but didn’t say anything, knowing that sometimes her lover needed time to process her emotions and give voice to her worries. She was a highly patient woman and this trait of hers had always been well-rewarded with a confidence that Alleria might not have been comfortable sharing otherwise. She continued carding through the Elf’s hair and pressed a small kiss to the other woman’s forehead, ensuring that Alleria would know she was still listening.

Said Elf leaned further into the touch and sighed again. “I’m not sure how to explain it. By all rights I should be happiest right now, yet I am not. Whenever I picture our wedding I feel…discontent. Almost as though something were…not _right_ with it. As though it were missing something, but I cannot put my finger on what that something might be.”

Realizing just what exactly her statements could be taken as, the Ranger’s eyes widened in panic and she immediately grabbed her lover’s hands with her own. “Belore take me, I’m so stupid. I didn’t mean I was unhappy with _us_ my heart! Please believe me when I say there is nothing more I want in this world than to marry you and be your consort.” She pulled those hands against her chest, lifting the soft tunic she wore so that Alexstrasza’s palms would touch her skin directly. “Do you feel my heart race as though it’s trying to burst out of my chest? It beats only for you, my love. I am _so bad_ at words, but please, please believe that I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone else in my life and that I can’t wait to be your wife.”

The Life-Binder laughed softly and pressed a loving but brief kiss to her lover’s lips so the woman would stop rambling. “It is quite all right, beloved. Although unneeded, I appreciate your efforts to reassure me that you still wish to marry me as much as I still wish to marry you.” Golden eyes were filled with love and understanding, and they sparkled with just a tiny bit of mirth. “Your phrasing truly _does_ need some work, however. I hope our vows will not present you with such a challenge, lest you hasten to reassure me that you promise to love me in such a worried manner again. I would not mind at all, but I am sure you would not be happy with such an occurrence.”

Growing serious again, Alexstrasza pulled their combined hands from underneath Alleria’s tunic and squeezed them lightly. “You mentioned that something was missing when you pictured our wedding, yet you and I have been through the decorations for the halls, the food that will be served afterwards, we have a definitive guest list…” the Dragon Queen trailed off as her lover’s ears twitched when she mentioned the guest list, and an indulgent smile parted her lips. “Tell me, beloved, do you have an idea as to what it is that might be missing, if we have sorted out everything together?”

Alleria threw up her hands up and groaned miserably. “ _No_ and that’s the worst part! I’ve gone over it again and again, and I can’t figure out _what_ it is, but I just know that something in me feels… _empty_ when I picture the ceremony.”

Alexstrasza hummed thoughtfully and gazed straight into her Ranger’s eyes before voicing a thought . “Have you considered that it might not be some _thing_ that you feel is missing, but instead some _one_?”

Alleria frowned in confusion and looked to the side as she mentally went over the guest list, being unable to understand what her Queen was implying. “I don’t think so? We have received responses from everyone to whom we sent invitations to, and they all agreed to come to the wedding. It is going to be quite an event given that you, the Queen of Dragons, are marrying someone like _me_.”

The Life-Binder frowned and gently pulled Alleria’s gaze back to hers, her voice firm when she next spoke. “You are wonderful, Alleria Windrunner, and I will not allow anyone to say otherwise, even if that person is you. _Especially_ if that person is you. I love you and I am _proud_ to stand before a crowd that would see and hear me bind myself to you, body and soul, until the End Time comes.” She sighed softly and pressed her forehead lightly against her lover’s, her voice softer now. “I know what the whispers told you, and I know what _he_ told you for centuries on end. I know they lied to you until you believed them, my heart, but believe _me_ when I tell you that you are worthy and that you are the single strongest, most amazing person I have met in my long life. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for, beloved, and I will spend the rest of my days convincing you of this until you are able to believe it for yourself.”

Alleria didn’t know where in Alexstrasza’s impromptu speech she began crying, but she didn’t care about how she looked and instead pulled her Queen into a deep kiss, trying to put all the love and gratitude and just the sheer _happiness_ she felt for this woman that thought so highly of her even though she couldn’t do it herself into it. 

Maybe one day she would see herself as her beloved did. She couldn’t quite believe that would ever be the case, but Alexstrasza had a knack for proving her wrong, so she couldn’t discard the possibility.

The Dragon Queen allowed herself to enjoy the kiss for a little while before breaking it again and chuckling lightly, gently wiping her dearest one’s tears away. “I am always happy to receive your kisses, my heart, but we were speaking of our wedding and you feeling like it is missing something before we became distracted again.”

“It’s not my fault that you’re highly distracting, my Queen,” Alleria murmured softly, nestling herself in the crook of her beloved’s neck. “But yes, you mentioned it might be a someone that is missing?”

“Alleria, it is not like you to be obtuse, so I must conclude that you are deliberately avoiding the subject.” Alexstrasza shook her head. “The only people who have not received an invitation from you have been your sister and her wife.”

The Ranger flinched at that, her ears pinned back to her skull at the mention. “Must we speak of her right now?”

Alexstrasza nodded solemnly, her hand tracing gentle patterns on her lover’s arm. “I am afraid we must, my heart. You cannot keep avoiding the subject when it so clearly makes you unhappy to do so.”

Alleria let out a long, heavy breath, a heavy weight of tiredness and complicated family emotions settling on her shoulders again, making her stiffen. “What would you like me to say? That I _want_ her there? That I wish she weren’t a monster? That I wish the sister I knew was still there? The answer to those is no, yes, and yes. I don’t think things would end well if she were to be at the wedding, and I miss the sister I have lost.” Her eyes hardened and her ears twitched in anger. “But I also don’t think that it can be salvaged. She is not the Sylvanas I knew, the sister in whom I could trust with all of me, the woman I believed could be the Ranger-General our people needed. I knew she would do a better job that I ever could, so I felt at ease leaving it all in her hands. Now when I look at what she’s done…that is not my sister.”

Alexstrasza listened to Alleria’s small, impassioned tirade with the same patience and care as she always had. Alleria rarely ever talked about her sister, but whenever she did it was variations of this kind of talk, about how she could no longer consider the woman to actually _be_ her family. 

However…“You still love her, though.” It was a statement, not a question. “You cannot deny that you still love her, my heart, as otherwise this would not be hurting or troubling you so. The reason you feel like something is missing when you imagine our wedding is because the one that is missing is the sister you have yet to reconcile with.”

“There is no reconciling with a Banshee, my Queen.” Alleria growled, frustration clear in her voice. “She is undead and has either forgotten who she used to be, what she used to stand for, or she is simply no longer the Sylvanas I knew a thousand years ago. Either way, she is no longer my sister.”

“I would never presume to tell you what your feelings are, my Ranger,” The Life-Binder began softly, choosing her words carefully as she always did when they were in emotionally-fraught waters. “But I cannot help but think that this sounds very similar to what _he_ used to say about _you._ ”

Alleria flinched as though struck, pulling away from Alexstrasza and turning to gape at her with a wounded expression that tore at the Dragon Queen’s heart. The Elf’s voice was a croak when she was able to find it again. “What?”

“I cannot excuse the loss of life that your sister has brought about, my love. I would never do such a thing, and I am aware that she has committed terrible acts both before and during her time as Warchief of the Horde,” Alexstrasza sighed, wishing there was an easier way to say this, “But the way you judge her for being undead is very similar to the way that man judged you for having chosen the Void over the Light. You are more than your link to the Void, Alleria, and you are stronger than the whispers that bit at your heels for far longer than anyone should have to withstand. You fought relentlessly against them, knowing that it would be a hard struggle but one that you could and have, for the most part as of now, won. Yet he did not care about that and condemned you for your mere association to an entity that was not the one he followed, judged you for not sharing in his faith without listening to you when you said that you were still _you_ and not merely a vessel for the Void Lords to command at their whim.”

“You have told me of your reunion with your sisters, and from what I was able to understand, you did not give Sylvanas a real chance. You believed her to be lost before you even spoke to her, because you believe that as an undead she had given herself to darkness fully already.” Oh, how it hurt to see the heartbreak in those beautiful blue eyes, but these were things that her lover needed to hear, things that she needed to be aware of if she was going to find any measure of relief from the torment that held her in its unrelenting grip. “You are, in effect, turning your back on her in the same way that those who saw you and only saw your connection to the Void turned their backs on you.”

Alleria wanted to protest, to say that those were not the same things, but she knew that Alexstrasza wouldn’t have said all of this without having thought long and carefully about it beforehand. She knew by now that the Dragon Queen never spoke without a reason for her words, and she would never say something like this to hurt her or simply out of callousness. Alexstrasza was all warmth and tenderness, always caring, always sweet; endlessly patient and respectful and _gentle_ , always gentle. For her to say something like _this_ , the Life-Binder had to truly believe that what she was saying was correct.

But then that left the question: was her lover right? Had she been judging Sylvanas too harshly? Had she, perhaps, been influenced more than she thought she had been by her former husband and his thoughts on the Light and goodness and all the other things he had used to spout in life? He had managed to convince her, after all, that she had been the one in the wrong, that she had been the one to cause the rift between them, that she had deserved the torment that had plagued her every moment of her life ever since her pact with the Void, whether asleep or awake, and he had made her feel so, so small at times. If he had managed to convince her to think that about _herself,_ to doubt her own worth, to believe the worst of herself…was it truly so outlandish to think that more of his views had seeped, without her realizing it, into her subconscious and that she had judged others by those as well?

After thinking about this for long minutes, turning her lover’s words in her head, Alleria had to admit that it was a strong possibility. Even so, there was the subject of the atrocities her sister had committed, and what was she supposed to do about _those?_ “I think…you might be right about the harshness with which I judged Sylvanas during our reunion, my Queen. But that still leaves all of the things she has done. All the lives she has taken, the things that I still cannot believe my sister would ever do, or even begin to understand why she thought they needed to be done in the first place.”

Alexstrasza bit back a sigh of relief at this. She was glad that Alleria had taken the time to think through her words and take them to heart. There was room for misinterpretation in what she’d said and though she would never, _ever_ willingly hurt her beloved, the possibility existed that her words could be seen as a cruel jab at the Ranger. She was incredibly glad that Alleria knew her enough, _trusted her_ enough to know that her words were meant to try and help her rather than wound her further. “Perhaps that is the place where you begin, my love. _Ask her_ about her actions. _Ask her_ about her reasons. Talk to her and get to know her mind again, for that is how you will gain a better understanding of why she did what she did.” A gentle smile once again adorned the Dragon Queen’s lips. “Who knows? She may surprise you yet, and you may have more family than you believe as of now.”

The Ranger’s heart melted at the _love_ that she could see in those beautiful golden eyes of her Queen’s. She was so, so lucky, and she would never tire of thanking the Goddess for having made her find her way to this wonderful woman. “I don’t know if I can be as optimistic as you are, my beloved, but I think you’re right. It might be high time for me to talk to my sister fully and see if there is anything that might be salvaged yet of whom we used to be.” _After all, I cannot say that_ I _am the same person I used to be a thousand years ago either. Maybe…maybe there is something there. Something we can build upon again._

The Life-Binder’s smile grew wider and she pulled Alleria into a warm embrace, enjoying the sweetness of having her lover so close to her. “As long as there is life there is hope, my heart. I believe that there may be more to her than most can see, and if there is anyone that can uncover that, it is you.” She pulled away slightly from the hug and gave Alleria an impish look. “You know, Xerestrasza returned from the Storm Peaks just before I came to find you. She informed me that there was a thunderstorm brewing as she was leaving, so it should be fully formed by now. I had initially been looking for you to offer you a ride through them.”

Alleria’s eyes brightened at this, her blood warming as she thought of how thrilling it would be to fly through the roar of the wind and rain and thunder, dodging lightning bolts and trusting that Alexstrasza would never allow any harm to come to her. “I would be delighted to accept your invitation, my Queen.”

Alexstrasza didn’t need to be told twice. Helping her lover up, she jumped off the temple and transformed into her majestic dragon form, giving out a great roar of delight as her wings stretched to their fullest. 

Alleria laughed in delight and jumped as well, knowing without a doubt that Alexstrasza would catch her.

_______________________

A knock on the door broke Jaina from her musings. She placed her quill to the side and got up from her desk, stretching a bit as her joints ached in protest from being still for so long.

She was surprised to see Anya on the other side of the door when she opened it. “Anya? Is there something the matter?”

The Dark Ranger shook her head and extended her hand, a letter in it the obvious answer to Jaina’s question. “It is addressed to you and the Dark Lady. She is currently in a meeting as you know, so I felt it more appropriate to deliver it to you.”

The mage frowned lightly and took the envelope gingerly, wondering what news this could be. “Thank you, Anya, I will be seeing to this matter, then. Kindly inform the Warchief of this letter, and tell Velonara I said hello, would you?”

Anya grinned and saluted lightly before disappearing in that disturbingly quick and smooth manner of all Dark Rangers.

Jaina shook her head in amusement and opened the letter, her eyes widening as she saw that the envelope contained not a letter as she had imagined, but an invitation that she hadn’t expected to see. 

She read it three times to make sure her eyes were not deceiving her, and then she turned the card on the other side, a few simple lines leaving her even more floored than she’d been before.

_Can we talk? For real this time. I want to see if there is something left of who were before…and if we can make something new out of that._

_-A_

“Well,” Jaina breathed out, not having expected this at all. “This ought to be interesting.”

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to Raff who always hears me yell about my fics and is endlessly patient and kind about everything. Thank you, Raff!~


End file.
